Agent 47
Agent 47 is a fictional character and main protagonist of the Hitman video game series released by IO Interactive and Square Enix Europe. He is consistently voiced by David Bateson. In video games Agent 47's typical attire consists of a black suit, black leather gloves, white dress shirt and a red tie. As the Hitman video game series allows players the option of engaging in stealth-based strategy to avoid conflict, Agent 47 has the ability to exchange his stock costume (a costume assigned to Agent 47 at the beginning of a level or displayed in a cut scene) with various characters in the game to avoid detection. There are a wide variety of costumes to choose from including police, military, medical and culinary uniforms that are all made available by incapacitating non-player character and 'stealing' their clothing. In addition to the signature suit, alternative stock costumes are occasionally provided. In Codename 47, he is seen wearing a guerrilla camouflage in the jungle, while in Silent Assassin Agent 47 wears a protective anorak in the Japanese mountains and a blue turban in India. At the end of ''Blood Money'', Agent 47 wears a white suit and white gloves while he is placed into a coffin during his funeral. In addition to clothing, Agent 47's distinctive choice of weaponry plays an important role in his appearance. He prefers to use a pair of silver customized AMT Hardballers nicknamed "Silverballers." Following the third video game in the series, Hitman: Contracts, the Hitman symbol replaces the Silverballer logos that are typically printed on the side of the pistol's slide. Throughout the franchise, the Silverballers serve as Agent 47's signature weapon, along with his fiber wire black garrote, appearing in every game of the series. Agent 47 is completely bald with very pale skin and blue eyes with dark eyebrows. His International Contract Agency (ICA) file from Hitman: Absolution states his height as .Hitman Absolution: Trailer „ICA File 5 - Agent 47“; (photo 1 from trailer, photo 2 from trailer). In Hitman: Enemy Within, his weight is given as .William C. Dietz: Hitman: Enemy Within, 2007, Del Rey Books, ISBN 978-0-345-47132-1, page 12. Since players of the video game series control the character from a third person perspective, the barcode that is tattooed on the back of his head is starkly prominent, although in Hitman: Absolution, he has the tattoo covered by a bandage for most of the game, after he removes it in an attempt to disguise himself. His barcode acts as a security key to access areas of the facility where he was created and trained. 47's barcode is implied to be in Code 39; according to Dr. Ort-Meyer's journal, the barcode was added to the tattoo in 1975, one year after the code was developed. Curiously, the other characters in the games appear oblivious to the conspicuous tattoo. A newspaper's description of 47 in Hitman: Blood Money fails to mention the barcode as a notable characteristic. Character history Agent 47 was born on September 5, 1964 in a Romanian asylum with the number 640509-040147 tattooed on the back of his head in the form of a barcode. "64-05-09" denotes his date of birth, "04" indicates Series IV, "01" documents his class, and "47" is the order in which he was cloned. In the Hitman game series and the Hitman novel, Agent 47 is a genetically-enhanced clone and the culmination of decades of secret research into gene augmentation. His creation was funded by a group of investors who donated their own DNA to the project. In Hitman: Codename 47, five men of various nationalities served in the same unit of the French Foreign Legion. After their stint was finished, four of those men returned to their respective countries and founded their own criminal empires, becoming 4 of the biggest criminals in the world. The remaining one, Dr. Otto Ort-Meyer, ran a mental institution which he used as a cover for genetic experiments. In exchange for research funding, Ort-Meyer provided his former comrades with donor organs harvested from clone bodies, which significantly extended their longevity. In Hitman: Codename 47, each of Ort-Meyer's accomplices are said to be 60–70 years old but appear 10–20 years younger. The men whose DNA contributed to 47's creation are often referred to within the series as the "Five Fathers", consisting of Dr. Otto Wolfgang Ort-Meyer himself, Lee Hong, Pablo Belisario Ochoa, Frantz Fuchs and Arkadij Boris Jegorov. Otto Wolfgang Ort-Meyer is a discredited German scientist living in Romania, whose radical theories were deemed insane by his peers.Ort-Meyer: I discovered the true power of 47 chromosomes. Do you think that was easy? As always, I was ahead of my time. They shook their bony little heads, looked at me with those beady little eyes and said I was crazy. You, my friend, are living proof that I'm not! Eidos Interactive Hitman: Codename 47 (United States) 2000-12-25 Ort-Meyer believed that genetic recombination and human cloning could be used to produce a perfect version of the human species, superior in strength and mind, and unburdened by conscience. His ultimate goal, unbeknownst to his associates, was to create an army of flawless and unquestioningly obedient supermen as his personal army.Ort-Meyer: Man was made at the end of the week's work, when God was tired. I quickly improved on all of the built-in flaws. I'll show the whole world who's right - and decide who will be left! Eidos Interactive Hitman: Codename 47 (United States) 2000-12-25. When Ort-Meyer's associates become suspicious of his motives, he employs 47 to systematically eliminate each of them. When 47 discovers Ort-Meyer's plans, he manages to eradicate his latest series of clones, known as the Mr. 48s, and snaps Ort-Meyer's neck. Ultimately, Ort-Meyer managed to perfect the process enough to produce an assembly line of genetically augmented clones, including Mr. 17, the antagonist of the second Hitman video game. 47 belonged to Ort-Meyer's fourth series of clones, possessing a 47th chromosome which, combined with DNA harvested from the world's most dangerous criminals, endowed him with levels of strength, speed, stamina, and intelligence significantly above the human norm. In Hitman: Blood Money, it is explained that American interests had repeatedly attempted to replicate Ort-Meyer's success, but were largely unsuccessful. 47 represents the most successful result of Ort-Meyer's research. Other clones produced by Ort-Meyer were plagued by medical problems such as albinism and extremely short lifespans (before 47, other test subjects lived only 18 months). Ort-Meyer's research was distributed among many covert cloning labs, but is insufficient; a sample of 47's bone marrow is needed to fill in the DNA gaps, making him an extremely valuable specimen. Early life Agent 47 was raised in Romania, by cloning facility staff, along with 50 other "Series IV" clones. From the beginning, Dr. Ort-Meyer identified 47 as his most promising creation. He was quiet and showed little social behavior except for one incident where he adopted a runaway laboratory rabbit, much to Ort-Meyer's displeasure. Agent 47 also had violent relationships with the asylum staff; regular invasive medical tests and frequent painful injections fostered strong enmity. On one occasion, he stabbed a doctor repeatedly with several needles, prompting Ort-Meyer to increase the number of personnel assigned to control him. Training Agent 47's training revolved around efficient killing techniques. He was instructed in the use of rifles, sidearms, military equipment and machinery as well as knives, improvised weaponry and garrotes, making him highly competent with a diverse array of weapons. Advanced hand-to-hand combat training and his genetic advantages allow Agent 47 to excel in scenarios ranging from self-defense against multiple opponents to murdering or incapacitating targets while unarmed. During his training, Agent 47 was noted for his distinguished marksmanship and assault on asylum staff with homemade slingshots. When Agent 47 was 30 years old, he found a gap in the security and escaped the asylum, killing a security guard in the process. However, it is later revealed that Ort-Meyer purposely freed him to test his training in the world. Employment A year after escaping the asylum, 47 was employed by International Contracts Agency, a clandestine organization providing assassination and mercenary services. With a lifetime of training and genetically augmented physical abilities, he soon became the Agency's most effective employee. He briefly retired from the Agency between the events of Hitman: Codename 47 and Hitman 2: Silent Assassin, but returned to work for the Agency shortly thereafter. He enjoys his only notable human friendship with his handler, Diana. Agent 47 threatened to find a new employer after the I.C.A. had a significant loss of influence during the events of Hitman: Contracts. Despite the threat however, he continued with the I.C.A. until the events of Hitman: Blood Money, during which the organization is destroyed. At the end of that game the I.C.A. is rebuilt. The last scene depicts Agent 47 walking into a shop, using a fake name and asking what they have to sell "preferably in the back," suggesting that he has resumed his career at either the I.C.A. or a competing organized criminal organization. Personality Agent 47 is an introverted character who almost always speaks without emotion in a calm, formal manner that could be considered muted or blunt. His lack of emotion while committing acts of murder is his defining characteristic. One minor but notable exception to this is in one of the final cut scenes of Hitman: Blood Money, where he cursed at his I.C.A. handler Diana, when she injected him from behind with a syringe. Agent 47 once demonstrated a high degree of devotion to Father Vittorio, the Sicilian priest who provided him shelter in Hitman 2: Silent Assassin, going so far as to rescue Vittorio from the Russian mafia even though there was no monetary reward in it (in fact, according to Vittorio, Agent 47 donated a large percentage of his earnings from Hitman: Codename 47 to the Catholic Church). In the end, Agent 47's work spilled over into the church, when his enemies located his hiding place in a Catholic monastery. This led to an attack on the monastery and the murder of a number of priests before 47 was able to stop the attack. As a result of the incident, Agent 47 has chosen isolation rather than association with innocent people who might be targeted for retaliation. Agent 47 places a significant measure of trust in his Agency contact, Diana Burnwood. She is the one character in the series that Agent 47 has had constant contact with, and probably the closest thing he has to a friend. As a general rule, however, they never meet face-to-face.47: "It's dangerous to meet in person. You're normally more prudent. What's going on?" | Eidos Interactive Hitman: Blood Money (in English) 2006-5-30 In Absolution, she was 47's target. He shot her, seriously wounding her, but did not finish her off, and she eventually recovered. On a few occasions, Agent 47 has shown a warm side to his personality. While being raised by Dr. Ort-Meyer, he befriended a rabbit.Untitled Document He has no apparent interest in sex or romance; it is unknown whether this is due to genetics, training, or simply a conscious decision on 47's part. He has shown considerable forbearance to a young prostitute named Lei Ling (renamed to "Mei Ling" in Hitman: Contracts), rescuing her from slavery on several occasions. In Hitman: Blood Money, Agent 47 picks up a small canary during his travels. He and the canary appear to be fond of each other, with the latter showing a happy responsiveness to his playful hand gestures. However, he later kills the bird to silence it when he hears an intruder approaching his position. In Absolution, he showed considerable sympathy for Victoria, a teenaged girl with origins similar to his own. Morality In the trailer of the Hitman film, Agent 47 is described as a "necessary evil". He will kill anyone he has been assigned to assassinate without hesitation (the only exception being Diana Burnwood in Absolution). However, he has been known to spare individuals whom he has not been specifically ordered to kill and if they don't show a significant threat to him (a few cutscenes in Hitman: Contracts show him knocking out rather than killing various henchmen and bystanders), and even to occasionally offer assistance to those in need. However, he has also demonstrated a cold willingness to kill innocents if they pose a direct threat to his mission; Blood Money s final mission shows Agent 47 executing an innocent priest and a reporter, both of whom knew his identity and was sure they would provide information about him if they were left alive. In Absolution, while his overall motives are good (rescuing Victoria from those who seek to exploit her), he kills a number of people simply because they "know too much", for example, Jade Nguyen. While 47 is capable of appalling acts of violence and murder, he has a certain degree of morality. This is most noticeable in Hitman 2, which features a Sicilian priest named Father Vittorio. Along with the I.C.A. and Diana, Father Vittorio was the only person who knew about his past, although he forgave him for his sins, allowing 47 to retire, working as a gardener in the church. He showed great skills in farming and taking care of the land. Eventually, he returned to his original occupation as an assassin in part to save Vittorio. He returned to his line of work at the end of the game, knowing that it would be best for him to face isolation rather than endanger people close to him. Additionally, 47 is very much a man of his word: be it a contract to commit a murder or a promise to a dying friend to save a young girl, if he says he will do something, it will be done. Abilities While 47 is not a superhuman, his abilities are at the very maximum of the abilities of a human performance, if not even above. As a Class 1 type clone, 47 can be seen performing physical tasks much more efficiently than an average human. He has mastered the art of stealth, being able to sneak up on almost anybody and quietly neutralize them. He also has an expert level understanding in the use of disguises in order to access unauthorized areas of a location. He has an Olympian physique, physically strong enough to climb pipes, move and dispose of bodies, and jump from balcony to balcony with minimum effort. He is noted to be skilled with a number of vehicles; various games see him operating cars, boats, buses, helicopters, and various aircraft. 47's enhanced DNA and intensive training have made him seemingly impervious to fear, enabling him to remain perfectly calm in virtually any situation. This ability enables him to focus on his task, allowing him to do things that would be nearly impossible for anyone else. This trait also allows him to effectively disguise himself and enter restricted areas without raising any suspicion from guards or civilians. He is always perfectly aware of all his surroundings and constantly calculates his every action, never losing focus. Though trained extensively in armed and unarmed combat and in the use of every weapon from long-range rifles to blades or bludgeons, Agent 47 is fully adept at surveying his environment and using it to his advantage, most notably his ability to use the environment to either distract guards or eliminate targets (often making their deaths appear accidental). He is also resourceful and smart enough to maintain anonymity by avoiding leaving forensic evidence behind. As a part of his training, 47 has a detailed understanding of human physiology, shown through his use of poisons, and sedatives. It is also clear that while trained as a killer, he can non-lethally disable adversaries with chloroform, syringes, chokeholds, or open hand-to-hand combat. He also understands human nature: he knows how best to move throughout an area, can tell when people are suspicious of him, and can instinctively choose appropriate actions to dispel their suspicion. Reputation Due to his successful track record, 47 is usually given the Agency's largest, most complex and most difficult assignments. He completes all of his assignments with unwavering accuracy, fulfilling all of his objectives and unfailingly eliminating his targets. 47's stealth and cunning are so perfect that 47's existence in the I.C.A. became legendary; he is regarded by the world as an urban legend of a "mysterious assassin", and very few know of his appearance (fewer people even know that he exists). The degree of 47's professionalism is such that in the trailer sequence that plays on the title screen of Blood Money, the speaker states that once a client has contracted 47 to perform an assassination, he cannot be called off and will fulfill the contract through to the end no matter the difficulty or the victim itself, even if the client changes their mind, meaning that the client must be absolutely certain of their desire to have the contract fulfilled before they request 47 themselves from the Agency. It also has been noted that 47 is the most expensive assassin offered by the I.C.A., and that his assignments have been among the Agency's most lucrative. Living quarters 47's hideout is unknown, and it's unknown where it is, or actually how many hideouts he owns. They are often portrayed to be run-down buildings. He operated out of Father Vittorio's church in Hitman 2: Silent Assassin. In Hitman: Blood Money, his primary hideout seemed to be in a sewer, with a single laptop to maintain contact with the I.C.A., a shooting range and an armory, and a single rusty bed. He also had a small apartment, in which he kept a small bird in a cage, the only nonessential item he kept around. At the end of the game, he killed the bird without remorse to prevent it from blowing his cover. In film ''Hitman In the 2007 ''Hitman feature film, Agent 47 is portrayed by Timothy Olyphant. His back story differs significantly from that of the video game. The organization he works for is renamed the International Contract Organization. Instead of clones, his employer takes in orphans and trains them as professional assassins, of which Agent 47 is considered the best. He does not appear to use 47's signature fiber wire, but he does use twin .45 pistols. His personality is generally consistent with the games as he displays the same emotional detachment and dedication to killing his targets. He retains his calm under pressure, as well as his disdain for killing or harming the innocent (as demonstrated by his protection of a woman named Nika, as well as his decision to spare Interpol agent Mike Whittier, despite Whittier having seen his face). He has no disdain whatsoever for killing non-targets; most of his missions involve killing large numbers of henchmen (the kind of missions that would merit a "Mass Murderer" rating in most of the games). ''Hitman: Agent 47'' On February 5, 2013, Paul Walker was reported to star in a reboot of the film franchise, with the title being Hitman: Agent 47.Fox International Reloading 'Hitman' With Paul Walker As Bald Barcoded Assassin Agent 47 On January 9, 2014, actor Rupert Friend was chosen as lead actor, after Walker's death in a car accident on November 30, 2013.EXCLUSIVE FIRST LOOK AT RUPERT FRIEND AS AGENT 47 IN THE HITMAN SEQUEL Reception Games Radar In 2012, Games Radar ranked Agent 47 as 47th "most memorable, influential, and badass" protagonist in video games, commenting "To refer to Hitman's Agent 47 as a hero would be a bit of a misnomer. He has been known, after all, to unceremoniously murder a man simply because his clothes were deemed desirable, and then also cram that man's naked corpse into an armoire in an insane effort to cover his tracks."Agent 47 - 100 best heroes in video games, GamesRadar, October 19, 2012 The same site ranked him as the 4th "top assassin", commenting "Cloned in a lab and raised from birth to be the perfect assassin, 47 is a cold, conflicted soul." GamesRadar also ranked his barcode as the "6th sickest tattoo in gaming", stating "The perfect ink for the perfect assassin, Agent 47's barcode is proof a tattoo doesn't have to be flashy to be sick." IGN IGN ranked Agent 47's Fiber Wire as the "94th top video game weapon", commenting "It's always there, lurking just inside his jacket pocket, waiting to silently snuff out his marks (or indeed, anybody else he sees fit)." IGN ranked him as the gaming's fourth "most notorious" anti-hero, commenting "He's just doing his job, you might say, like most people do. But his method of operation elevates him to a sadistic level. He does whatever it takes to get the job done – collapsing hot tubs, dressing up as waiters, poisoning donuts, and more. Even if it's just his job, he's no good guy and deserves a spot on this list."IGN Staff,Gaming's Most Notorious Anti-Heroes, IGN, March 5, 2012 Complex Complex ranked him as the 5th "best assassin and hitman in video games", adding "Whether putting together cold and calculated plots to take out his target or running in guns blazing to empty a room (up to the player, of course), Agent 47 is the original contract killer who makes his own rules." Complex ranked him as the "11th most stylish hitman", adding "Agent 47 trademarks in banality and straightforwardness, so he fittingly sticks to the stock assassin's uniform: black suit and black leather OJ isotoners." Complex also ranked him as the "23rd most stylish video game character", commenting "A well-tailored suit never goes out of fashion. While we would have liked to see Thom Browne put some work into modernizing the cut, we’re not complaining." The same site also named his likeness to David Bateson as the "25th best video game character look-a-like (sic)", where they stated "You can thank him for badass bald head." WatchMojo WatchMojo ranked Agent 47 as the "6th best video game secret agent", commenting "Spanning six video games, two novels, a movie (and a reboot of that movie), Agent 47 may very well be the most recognizable secret agent to debut in a game." WatchMojo also ranked him as the "3rd best video game anti-hero", adding "This contract killer doesn’t show much remorse for his victims, but that allows him to be ruthlessly effective at his job." The same site also ranked him as the "top video game assassin" where they stated "With his black suit, leather gloves, and signature silverballer pistols, who else could top our list?" Empire Empire ranked him as the 21st "greatest video game character", stating: "A silent weapon for the International Contract Agency (ICA), Agent 47 - a name derived from the last two digits of his assigned number - is the perfect killer clone: a deadly mix of speed, intellect and strength. Originally conceived by IO Interactive as a disgruntled and bearded old guy, he was later transformed into the barcode-tattooed, snappy dresser who has since become a gaming staple. Leather gloves, red tie, black suit and bald, barcode-adorned head, Agent 47 is striking to the point where it's probably something of a hindrance in his chosen line of work."The 50 Greatest Video Game Characters, Empire, May 28, 2010 Others Gaming Symmetry ranked Agent 47 as the "top video game assassin of all-time", adding "Agent 47 was created to be an assassin. I mean literally. And I’m not missing the word literally here." Similarly, The Telegraph placed him third on their Top 10 video game anti-heroes, stating "Call him what you want; any attempt to morally redeem Agent 47 stops dead at his job-title. This gentlemen takes life for money." The same site ranked him as the 7th "best video game assassin", commenting "Not only is Agent 47 a master of gunplay, he's also pretty good at making things look like an accident." Additionally, Thunderbolt Games ranked him as the "3rd best videogame anti-hero, stating "Protagonist 47 is basically the perfect killer – confindent , patient, relentless and brutal." FHM ranked him as the 3rd "most memorable hitman in gaming", adding "With four full games and a Hollywood movie under his belt, Agent 47 is definitely a star."Gelo Gonzales, The 5 most memorable hitmen in gaming, FHM, November 26, 2009 In 2012, WhatCulture ranked Agent 47 as "2nd Wicked Video Game Assassin That Couldn't Be Stopped", calling him "simply the best cloned cold blooded bald bar-coded bad ass". In 2013, WhatCulture ranked Agent 47 as "2nd Videogame Character Who Inexplicably Survived A Sh*tload Of Punishment", commenting "The guy can shut out the pain and just keep on trucking, simply because he’s nuts. He can sustain more holes than your average game of Kerplunk, but still aim without a hint of discomfort". In 2015, WhatCulture ranked Agent 47's tattoo as the "14th famous video game tattoo", adding "Agent 47’s famous barcode is a permanent reminder that he’s a product; a cold, clean killing machine that carries its job out with unquestioning efficiency." WhatCulture ranked Agent 47 as the "19th sexiest video game guy of all time" and as the "25th most iconic video game character of all time", commenting "aside from his good looks, Agent 47’s fame comes entirely from the unique mechanics of the Hitman games themselves and the character’s fictional history." In 2016, WhatCulture ranked his Agent 47's fiber wire kill as the "14th most iconic signature move in video game history", adding "Voice actor David Bateson has given Agent 47 quite the cool sense of calm no matter whether you’re bludgeoning someone with a hammer or skewering them with a fork handle, but there’s no more signature execution than using the now 16 year-old fiber wire." GameDaily ranked Agent 47 as the 8th "top baldie", commenting "His black suit and red power tie accentuate his baldness. No need for hair." In 2010, G4 included Agent 47 among the best assassins in all video games, adding "From birth he was trained to be a calculated killer and a snappy dresser." In 2011, Buzzer ranked him as the "10th top video game character", calling him "the best representation of the Grim Reaper in video games." Play magazine ranked him as the "3rd top slaphead" and as the "4th greatest PlayStation assassin", adding "Genetically engineered to be the best hitman in the history of humanity, 47 comes with quite a billing." Crizic ranked him as the "9th best gaming character", stating "Of all the assassins in the world, Agent 47 is the guy you would never want to mess." In 2013, Cheat Code Central ranked him as the "2nd top video game assassin", adding "47’s kill count is innumerable, and he remains one of the best assassins in the business…period." In 2015, regarding the character's 15th anniversary, Arcade Sushi commented "Whether he's in his iconic suit or wearing a janitor's jumpsuit, it'll always be a delight to be taking out targets with the Silverballer pistols, sniper rifle and garrote wire as Agent 47." 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